Pain Redefined
by KD Skywalker
Summary: With Pepper's help, will it be enough to overcome all the demons that haunt Tony? But what secrets does Pepper have that Tony has to help her with as well? TS/PP
1. Chapter 1

_Disclaimer:I don't own Iron Man, et al. They belong to Marvel…Stan Lee and Jack Kirby rule!!_

_AN:  Ok so this story idea came from a Disturbed song by the same name. So enjoy and feedback is wonderful! It is food for my muse. I promise that later chapters will be longer!  
_

Chapter One:

"TONY WAKE UP!!" Pepper Potts yelled at her boss as she violent shook him awake.

"Hun?" Tony Stark groggily asked, opening his eyes only to find his assistant, wide-eyed and flustered, starring down at him. He had once again fallen asleep on his leather couch in his workshop. And once again, he had had a dream about being held captive in Afghanistan. The last thing in the world he wanted to wake up to was Pepper, especially since she had been in his dreams as of late.

"Are you alright?" she worriedly asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he quickly said brushing her off as he sat up and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a quick glimpse of a worried look from Pepper. Ever since his Iron Man announcement a week ago, she had been giving them to him more and more. He had yet to even tell her about his encounter with Nick Fury.

"I promise that I am fine Pepper," he said standing up and stretching. He knew that he wasn't, but he just couldn't tell Pepper that he had watched her die right in front of him.

"Will you at least talk to me about it?" she gently asked once his back was turned to her.

"Why do you even care?" he snapped at her.

She quickly recoiled against the sharpness of his tongue and turned to leave the workshop, leaving behind a stack of papers to be signed along with a cup of hot coffee. "I'll be upstairs if you need me, Mr. Stark," she said without turning to look back at him. He knew, after several years of working for him, that when Pepper's tone of voice changed like that meant that she was either mad or frustrated with him. And in this case, most likely it was that she was frustrated.

"Wait Pepper," he gently said.

She stopped, but didn't turn around to look at him.

"Look I'm sorry I snapped at you," he said. "It's just that talking about what happened is hard because I relive the pain every time. And its not enough that I'm left with a reminder of what happened for the rest of my life."

He tapped the top of the arc reactor beneath his tattered t-shirt. By then Pepper had turned back around and walked back towards were he was standing. She reached out and gently placed her hand on top of the arc reactor where his was. She knew that she shouldn't and that she was treading in waters that she vowed never to tread in, but Tony deserved to know that he wasn't the only one hurting here.

"Sometimes talking does help, Tony," she said looking up at him. "You're not the only one who was hurt by what happened over there. You and Rhodey are all the family I have left. Seeing you like this is tearing me up. If you can't tell me about it, at least tell Rhodey or Jarvis. After my mom died, I had nightmares too. Eventually they went away after I talked about them. I don't care if you have to go save the world as Iron Man, but yes, I will worry each time you put on that suit. But I also worry when I have to wake you up from nightmares."

"I love you Pepper Potts."

The words had tumbled out of his mouth before they had made it to his brain. But when Tony had realized what he had just said to his shocked, yet beautiful, assistant, he knew that he was right. He loved Pepper Potts.

"You love me?" she asked dumbfounded.

He nodded without saying a word as he leaned in and softly kissed her lips. It wasn't a deep kiss or a forceful one. But nonetheless, it was just right for them. It was their first kiss.

"You know that this is going to change everything," she said as she lay her head against his shoulder.

"Really now?" he asked. "How so?"

"You'll have to find a new assistant."

"Not a chance in hell. Who better then my assistant/girlfriend to keep up with all my stuff for me plus keep my sanity?"

Pepper laughed as she wrapped her arms around Tony again. She hoped that they were doing the right thing.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two:

AN: Thanks to all my lovely reviewers and readers!! So enjoy this next chapter!!

Chapter Two:

Tony adjusted the ice pack against his shoulder as he trudged up the stairs into the main part of his house. It was 3 am in the morning and he had just gotten back from a mission to China to destroy some more Stark weapons that had fallen into the wrong hands. A simple routine mission, nothing out of the ordinary. But the flight home had been killer.

That was when he had decided that he needed to either come up with a better set of flying boots or some kind of jet plane to get him to places faster. No wonder flying was for the birds. Yet he did have to admit that flying helped him clear his mind at times and focus on what really mattered in life, such as his girlfriend.

It had been two wonderful weeks since he had admitted out loud that he loved her and she, shockingly, loved him in return. And since then, nothing had quite been the same in their lives. Well that wasn't entirely true.

Most everything was the same with the exception of stolen kisses, hugs, falling asleep in each other's arms and far less nightmares. Even Tony had noticed something about himself. He was actually content on being committed to a single woman without sleeping with her. That was when he knew that he had it bad for Virginia "Pepper" Potts – because he was taking his time with her and doing things right. But there was no way that he was going to tell her that.

As he walked into the living room, the sight on the couch brought a smile to his face. Pepper lay there, in one of his grungy old t-shirts and a pair of her pj pants, curled up in a blanket, sound asleep. A discarded pizza box lay open on the table, with a quarter of the pizza eaten out of it.

"Jarvis?" he quietly asked.

"Yes sir?" the AI replied just as quietly.

"How long has Pepper been asleep?"

"Almost two hours sir."

'_Pity to wake her.' _Tony thought looking down at her. She looked so cute, sleeping with her face buried beneath her favorite blanket that she kept over at the house. Instead of moving her to the guest room bed, where she would obviously be more comfortable, Tony decided that there was enough room to sleep next to her on the couch.

He carefully slid onto the couch next to her, careful not to wake her. Thank God, he had gotten that extra large couch last year when he had gotten new furniture at the spur of the moment.

After situating himself comfortably next to her, he placed his head close to hers, wrapped his arms gently around her waist and drifted off to sleep.

* * *

"Tony?" Pepper gently said rubbing his back.

"Just a few more minutes, please," he mumbled, turning over and snuggling his shoulder into the soft pillows on the couch.

"I would, but Agent Coulson is here to see you."

"Who let him in?" he mumbled again, still not opening his eyes.

"Jarvis," Pepper said. "Something about being deactivated again if he didn't comply with the agent's wishes. I couldn't understand what Jarvis was talking about."

Tony slowly opened one eye and let it focus on Pepper before opening the other. He could see that she was still wearing what she had fallen asleep in. he knew that it still must be early. "What time is it?"

"Nearly 9 am." a new voice added.

Tony sat up and peered around Pepper's slender frame at Coulson who was standing in the doorframe. "Sorry for the early morning intrusion but this is of the utmost importance."

Tony motioned for Coulson to sit down, while Pepper sat back down next to Tony, who was rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "What do we owe the honor of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s presence this morning?" Tony sarcastically asked.

"The Ten Rings."

"What about them?"

"They've regrouped."

"And this affects me how?"

"According to our intel, their new leader is a man by the name of Dhju." Coulson said handing Tony a file folder.

Tony opened the folder and glanced over the photos that were in the folder. When he got to the last one of a headshot of the new Ten Rings leader, he stopped. Images of Afghanistan and his captivity reverberated through his mind. This man looked exactly like Raza. But he knew that Raza was dead.

"Tony?" Pepper gently asked.

"Hun?" Tony asked coming out of his train of thought as he handed the file folder back to Coulson. "Who is this Dhju? He looks just like Raza."

"You are close. Dhju is Raza's younger brother. Right now things are stable in the region thanks to you taking out those weapons. But we're not sure for how long. If anything else happens, General Fury or myself will be in touch with you," Coulson said standing up.

"Thank you," Pepper said standing up and showing him out, leaving Tony sitting with his thoughts running like wildfire. Images of Pepper, lying in his arms dying, kept flowing in and out of his mind over and over again.

He was so lost in thought that he didn't notice that Pepper had walked back into the living room and sit down next to him, until she gently touched his arm. "Are you ok?"

He turned to look at her, trying to fight back the fear that was building in his chest. But the look of worry on her face caused him to loose his edge. "I'm sacred," he whispered.

"Scared?"

He nodded without looking at her. He suddenly felt so exposed. He had never really told anyone his true feelings before. But then again this was Pepper – his first true girlfriend. "I'm scared that the Ten Rings are going to get a hold of you and then something bad will happen. God, Pepper, I'm a wreck!" he said burying his head in his hands. That was when he felt her arms wrap around him and pull him close to her.

"We all are at times," she said, kissing the top of his head. "It's called being human. Now you know how I feel when you are out saving the world as Iron Man."

Nothing was said between them for a few minutes. Tony realized just how lucky he was to have Pepper in his life and he would be damned if he would fuck it up. That was when he also realized something else.

"Hey Pepper?" he said.

"Yeah."

"I still haven't taken you out on a real date," he said pulling back a bit from her.

She laughed a bit. "That's fine," she said. "I don't care."

"But I do!" he said standing up and helping her up. "Go on and get ready. Since today is Saturday, we're going to spend the entire day out."

"Anything certain that I need to wear, like a ball gown?" she jokingly asked.

"Just comfortable clothes."

She nodded as she turned to leave the living room and headed off towards the guest room, which acted often as her room.


	3. Chapter 3

AN: Thanks to all my readers and reviewers!! Please keep them coming!! My muse loves you all!!

Chapter Three:

"IHOP?" Pepper asked as Tony parked his Audi in front of the restaurant.

"Yup," he said as he grabbed a baseball cap from the floorboard. He stuck it on his head. "It was a long flight home from China last night and the pizza wasn't filling enough. Plus I'm craving pancakes."

Pepper laughed as they got out of the car and headed into the restaurant.

As they were walking into the restaurant, Tony noticed something about Pepper. Even thought she was dressed in a simple t-shirt, sandals and a pair of jeans with her strawberry blonde hair pulled back in a messy bun, she still astounded him. _'So this must be love,_' he thought to himself as he held the door open for her. He had to admit he liked this feeling.

Once inside, they were immediately seated, since the morning rush had already come and gone.

"Do you know what you want, Pepper?" Tony asked without looking at his menu once they were seated. He already had a mental image of a large stack of pancakes covered with syrup and melted butter.

"You go first," she said as the waitress walked over to the table. "I'm still not sure."

Tony ordered his extra large stack of pancakes along with a cup of coffee; Pepper was still having trouble deciding on what to order.

"She'll have three pancakes with coffee as well," Tony said for her as he took the menu from her and handed it to the waitress.

Once she was gone, Pepper threw Tony a look. "What is that for?" Tony asked, taken back a bit.

"Why did you order for me?"

"Because you seemed to be having a hard time making up your mind and I remembered that the last time that we were here with Rhodey, you ordered pancakes. So that is what I ordered for you."

Pepper smiled at the memory as she realized that Tony was right. She couldn't believe that he remembered. She wondered what other surprises he had in store for her that day.

* * *

After the late breakfast, he drove them down the Pacific Coast to a certain point where he hadn't been in a long time. It was a rocky overlook of the ocean that was absolutely break taking.

"This is beautiful, Tony," Pepper said as they sat on some boulders and looked out across the ocean.

"I used to come up here and think all the time," he said wrapping an arm around her and pulling her close to him. "This was where my dad asked my mom to marry him."

"Really?" Pepper asked looking up at him.

He nodded. "And this was one of the last places I was ever with them before they died in the car accident. We would come up here once a year for a family picnic. But after they died, I became someone else."

Pepper listened as Tony poured his heart out to her. She knew that he needed to get it all out before it consumed him.

"I hated who I had become, Pepper. I didn't mind the girls throwing themselves at me, but it was all pointless. I wanted more. I wanted this. I wanted what we have."

"And now you have it," she said squeezing his hand as she lay her head on his shoulder.

"You know I'm trying, right?"

"Trying not to mess it up?" she asked with a smile on her face.

He nodded with a look of fear in his eyes. She laughed slightly. "I know you are. And so far you are doing a great job," she said, kissing his cheek.

"But at the same time, I'm scared," he said looking away from her. "I'm sacred that one day I'm going to wake up and its all going to be gone. I'll be back in that God forsaken cave in Afghanistan and this will have all been a dream."

"Tony."

He slowly turned to look back at Pepper.

"I promise you that this isn't a dream," she said looking him directly in the eyes as she placed a hand against his cheek. "I don't know what exactly happened to you over there and I don't care if I ever know or not. All that matters is that you are here with me now and that I'm actually able to finally tell you that I love you."

"I love you too Pepper," he said leaning close to her. And just before he kissed her, he whispered something into her ear. "Besides its because of you that I am here. Realize that."

* * *

After spending the majority of the afternoon watching the surf from the rocky overlook or walking along the beach, they decided to call it a day.

"How about I cook dinner for you tonight?" Pepper suggested as Tony drove back towards Malibu.

"You can cook?"

"Of course I can."

"Prove it then," he said with a cocky grin.

"You're on," she said returning his cocky grin. "Now if you would please take me to the grocery store so I can pick up what I need since you don't care to keep food around your house."

* * *

"Ooooh can we get some of these too?" Tony asked holding up a box of Lucky Charms cereal. Pepper laughed a bit as she nodded yes. She swore that Tony was acting like a little boy in a candy store. "When was the last time that you actually when to a grocery store?" she wheeled the cart down the aisle of cereal, cookies and fruit snacks, with Tony throwing random groceries into the cart every so often.

"Before you came to work for me," he said as he picked up a box of crackers to look at it.

Pepper stopped the cart and looked at him in amazement. "That was almost four years ago, Tony."

"I know," he said shrugging his shoulders. "But I'm changing Pepper!"

He took control of the cart from her. "So what else do we need to get from this dinner that you are going to make?"

She looked down at her list that she had made in the car. "I think that's everything."

"Good," Tony said. "Because seeing all this food is making me hungry."

* * *

Pepper watched in amazement as Tony finished off his second helping of lasagna. "This is really good," he said with his mouth full.

She laughed a bit. "I'm glad you like it," she said as she took a sip of wine as she watched him finish eating.

After a few more minutes, Tony was finally done. "Dance with me," he said as soon as he was done. He was standing next to her with his hand held out. She smiled gently as he helped her up. He led her out onto the moonlit patio and pulled her close to him.

"Jarvis," he said.

"Yes sir?"

"Dancing music if you will please. Something nice and slow."

Pepper continued to smile as Tony held her close as they swayed to the soft music that Jarvis had chosen for them. In her mind, this, by far, had been one of the best days of her life. She had seen and learned so much about Tony – some she had already known about and other things she didn't.

But this – being held by him – was the best by far. She simply wrapped her arms around his neck and melted into his shoulder. The soft hum of the arc reactor reminded her just how lucky they both where to be standing here together. She gently moved one of her hands from around Tony's neck and placed it on top of the t-shirt where the arc reactor lay underneath. It was almost like she was thanking it for protecting Tony and helping him to live.

Tony subdued a smile as he continued to hold Pepper close as they danced. Ever since the Firefighter's benefit, he had dreamt of dancing with her again. And here he was. It was better then imagined. How did he get to be so lucky?

Finally, he was a man who had everything.

The longer they danced, the tighter he held her to him. He had grown so accustomed to her touch, the he was afraid to go with out it for a second. That was when he knew it was now or never. He had to be with her. He had gone too long without being with a woman and had dreamt too many times of being with Pepper.

"Pepper?"

"Hmm?" she asked looking up at him in the faint moonlight.

Before she could say anything else, Tony's lips were crashing down upon hers in a kiss full of fire and passion. And it was with that single kiss that she knew everything was about to change for them both. But she didn't care. Not anymore. No more being scared. No more worrying about others would think. No more of that.

She and Tony had already admitted so much to each other, so wasn't it only realistic that they take that next step? Besides Tony Stark was better known for getting women into bed instead of dating them.

As soon as Tony broke the kiss, he swept Pepper up into his arms and carried her back into the house.

"You know this changes everything," she warned as they made their way towards his bedroom.

"I'm ready to fall if you are Potts," he said with a grin.

* * *

AN #2: I was going to go into more detail, but I will just leave that for the mind to figure out for itself ;)


	4. Chapter 4

AN: Because ya'll asked for it – here it is…..Tony and Pepper together….so if you don't want to read it then I suggest not….just a forewarning!!

Chapter Four:

_As soon as Tony broke the kiss, he swept Pepper up into his arms and carried her back into the house. _

"_You know this changes everything," she warned as they made their way towards his bedroom._

"_I'm ready for that fall if you are Potts," he said with a grin._

* * *

Tony gently lay Pepper down against the pillows on his bed. Whenever he had brought dates home with him in the past, he had taken them to a guest room. But not this time. This was special. This was Pepper and she deserved only the best.

He gently kissed her lips as his hands roamed her body as they began to shed excess clothing – shoes, socks, his t-shirt and undershirt along with her shirt. Soon all they were left in were their jeans and Pepper was wearing her bra.

Tony continued his kissing assault as he began to move down Pepper's body. He slowly kissed along Pepper's collarbone, and then moved down along her already heaving chest. He gently nipped, sucked and kissed his way along towards her bra line. Once there, he reached behind Pepper, unhooked her bra, and added it to the mound of clothes on the floor.

He pulled away from her for a brief second. All he wanted to do was take in this moment. A moment that was going to change their lives forever. In the soft light from the moonlight and the arc reactor, he took in the sight of a half dressed Pepper Potts laying on his bed. It was a dream come true.

Without even thinking or hesitation, Tony moved next to her on the bed and kissed her deeper then he ever had before. As they kissed, he ran his rough fingers along her soft stomach, and then slowly moved them up to her breasts. He gently ran his calloused fingers over each of her soft nipples making them hard with his gentle touch. As he continued to play, his kisses began to trail down her neck slowly once again before letting his tongue dance over her hard nipples.

Pepper softly moaned. She never thought that being intimate with someone could feel this way. Especially after what she had been put through all those years ago…but that was neither here nor now. And Tony didn't need to know about that. Perhaps that was why she had withheld her emotions from him so long….maybe she was afraid of getting hurt. But she had been so wrong. She had honestly found a man who loves her for her.

The longer Tony paid attention to her breasts the more she wanted him to her other needs as well. Absent mindedly, Pepper began to rub her knee gently along Tony's inner thigh. She could feel Tony's penis struggling to get free of its bondage. That was when Tony's kisses moved back up her body.

"Feel something you like?" he whispered in her ear as he kissed her neck and then her earlobe.

She pulled him back around for a kiss as she felt him slip out of his jeans and boxers as well as helping her out of her jeans and panties as well.

"Don't make me beg," she practically growled.

Tony smiled as he kissed her deeply on the lips while positioning himself close to her opening. He teasingly rubbed the tip of his penis against her swollen lips. A soft moan escaped her lips.

"Please….Tony…I need you…."

"As you wish," he practically grunted, thrusting himself deep into her for the first time. He had dreamt of this moment for so long. Longer then he would ever admit to, but ever since coming home to a crying, yet happy Pepper Potts, he had wanted it even more so. And damn it sure was worth it.

He began to pick up the speed of his trusts as Pepper adjusted the way her legs were wrapped around his body so that he could fill more of her. The feel of her warmth around him as well as her nails against his tense back muscles were intoxicating.

As he continued to thrust into her, he kissed her deeply on the lips, allowing his tongue to meet hers to show just how much fire he was feeling. That was when he felt Pepper beginning to tense up and shake.

"Let it go baby," he grunted into her shoulder. "Ride it out."

Pepper's back arched as waves of pleasure over took her body. "God Tony!" she cried out, clawing at his back.

That just made Tony go faster and deeper into her. The tensing of her vaginal muscles around his penis along with her warmth and moans sent him over the edge. With one final thrust, he came deep into her. He collapsed against her sweaty body as he caught his breath as he pulled out of her. She nuzzled his cheek and lazily ran her fingers through his hair while he lay against her for a few moments, simply enjoying the feel of Pepper holding him close. He tried not to put too much weight on top of her, since he didn't want to leave a permanent indention of the arc reactor against her beautiful skin.

After a few minutes, he rolled off her and lay next to her on the bed. He pulled the sheets up around them as he pulled Pepper into his shoulder. He placed a soft kiss on her forehead as she curled up against him, completely worn out from their fun.

"Tony," she said, tracing her finger around the edge of the arc reactor.

"Yeah."

"I love you," she said yawning. "I have for a long time. I've just been sacred to tell you."

"I love you too," he said kiss the top of her head. "And I've loved you a long time as well. I think we've both been scared."

"One more thing," she said almost asleep against his chest.

"What?"

"Thank you."

"Thank you for what?"

But that answer would have to wait until morning. Pepper was already asleep. Tony smiled as he wrapped his arms around her tightly and drifted off to sleep. Good things come to those who wait. And damn, Pepper had been worth the wait.


	5. Chapter 5

_AN: Thanks to all my lovely reviewers and alerters!! Thanks!!_

Chapter Five:

Tony slowly opened his eyes to a wonderful sight. Pepper Potts was curled tightly against his shoulder, with her hand resting against the arc reactor. Her hair was spread out like a fan against him. He couldn't help but smile. He would love to wake up to this sight every morning.

He lightly kissed the top of her forehead and waited a few more minutes before he felt her begin to wake up.

"Tony?" she quietly asked, still with her eyes closed.

"Yeah?"

"Just making sure it was really you and that last night wasn't a dream," she said adjusting herself against his shoulder so that she could look up at him. He brushed the hair out of her face and gently kissed her lips.

"If it was a dream then I sure as hell don't want to wake up from it," he said with a smile.

Pepper smiled back.

"I have a question thought."

"What?" Pepper asked, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"Last night you told me thank you," he said a bit confused. "What did you mean by that?"

For a second she didn't say anything, which caused Tony to worry for a second. "It's nothing," she quickly said as she began to get out of bed. "Nothing at all."

But Tony wasn't buying it as he watched her disappear into the bathroom and reappear dressed in one of his t-shirts. "Do you want me to make you something for breakfast?" she asked pulling her hair back in a messy ponytail.

"Just some cereal."

Pepper nodded as she left the bedroom.

Tony waited a few more minutes before following after her. Something had struck a cord with her. He wasn't sure just exactly, what had happened. But he hoped that she would tell him what was bugging her.

* * *

For most of the day, Pepper seemed to avoid Tony. They had shared a few quick kisses in passing - but for the most part, she stayed upstairs and worked on getting things ready for the busy week ahead while he tinkered with either his hot rods or his Iron Man suit. Yet, his mind couldn't help but keep wondering back to the conversation in bed with Pepper. She had woken up so happy but when he had asked her about what she meant by thank you, she practically when rigid in his arms.

He just wished that he knew what the hell was going through her mind! Something was going on and he had to know before it drove him insane.

* * *

Pepper sat and starred at the computer screen as she fought back the tears. She was being unfair to both him and her. Tony deserved to know and she deserved to be happy. Besides, it had been almost 5 years since it had happened.

She took a deep breath as she set her laptop down and walked down towards Tony's workshop. She knew that if they were going to continue to have a physical relationship, then Tony had to know about her demons as well – especially since they still haunted her at times.

* * *

"Arg!"

Tony threw the wrench down in frustration and almost hit Pepper's flip flop clad feet. "Oh Pepper, I'm sorry!" he quickly said looking up. He immediately stood up from his swivel chair and began to walk towards her. "I didn't hear you come in."

"It's ok," she said, still avoiding his eyes. "I just had to come down here and tell you why I've been acting so strange today."

By then, Tony was standing directly in front of her with his hands on her hips. "What ever it is you can tell me."

She took a deep breath. "Five years ago I was raped."


	6. Chapter 6

AN: Thank you to all my reviewers and alerters!! It just makes me want to write more!! So enjoy and please leave reviews!!

Chapter Six:

For a brief second, Tony Stark's world imploded in around him. Had he heard correctly? Had the woman who stood before him – his girlfriend, the woman he actually loved more then life itself – been raped? He had to be mistaken? This was a cruel joke that Pepper was playing on him? But then again, tears were forming in the corners of her eyes.

Pepper wasn't one for cruel jokes. Rhodey was.

"Whoever it was, I'll kill him," he practically growled as he gently wiped the tiny tears away from Pepper's eyes.

She quickly shook her head no. "He's taken care of. I promise. That's that last thing I need to deal with – Iron Man disintegrating some jackass for raping his girlfriend five years ago."

Tony smiled a bit before softly kissing Pepper's lips. "If that's what it took," he whispered. "If that's what it took."

"All I want right now, is for you to just hold me," she softly said leaning against him.

He happily obliged. He wasn't going to ask any questions about it. He didn't want to know. It wasn't that he didn't care about knowing because he did want to know -- but it was like Pepper said, Iron Man might wind up disintegrating some jackass. Besides, if she wanted to tell him then she would. He figured that it had to be hard enough telling him that she had been raped, let alone going into the details.

As he held her in his arms, Tony made a silent vow to himself. Nothing was ever going to come between him and the woman he was holding in his arms as long as he lived. Also, if they could make it a month together then he knew they could make it a lifetime. That would be when he would take the ultimate plunge. He would get down on one knee right now if it would make all of Pepper's pain go away, but he knew it wouldn't. So, for his sake, he would wait a little while longer before asking her to become Mrs. Anthony Stark.

Besides, he could already tell that she was feeling a bit better. She was more relaxed in his arms already.

"Tony?"

"Yeah?"

"Can I stay here tonight? I don't want to go back to my place."

"You don't even have to ask."

* * *

Pepper sighed as she lay down to try to get to sleep in the guest room. She had insisted, much to Tony's displeasure, that she had to sleep in the guest room and he had to sleep in his room. Her reasoning was that she actually needed sleep and needed to be up at an ungodly early hour to make sure that everything was in order for the day. Thank goodness that she kept spare clothes, including suits, over at Tony's. Especially once, they had begun dating in anticipation for random sleepovers

Tony tried to argue with her about sleeping arraignments, saying that Jarvis would get her up. But it was no use. He finally gave up and let her win after she promised to cook him dinner again on Monday night.

She snuggled deep against the pillows and closed her eyes. The last few hours replayed in her mind as she tried to fall asleep. She knew deep in her heart that she had done the right thing by telling Tony about what had happened to her in the past. Except his reaction wasn't what she'd expect. She really and truly thought that he would have demanded to know what had happened, who the guy was and where he could be found.

Maybe Tony really was changing like he said he was. Pepper really hoped so – she was lucky enough to be able to see the sides of him that not too many people saw - the caring side and the side that wanted to change. At least she knew that he honestly loved her.

* * *

'_Just one last turn…_' Tony thought to himself as he was bent over his hotrod's engine.

It was 2 am in the morning and as usual, he was still wide-awake, tinkering with his hotrods. He couldn't sleep. Not yet at least. His mind was consumed with thoughts about Pepper being raped and beaten. And he swore that if he did go to sleep that he would have nightmares where she was being raped in front of him.

He really wasn't in the mood for that.

"Excuse me, sir," Jarvis said, interrupting Tony's thoughts.

Jarvis' quick comment caused Tony to jump a bit. "Yes Jarvis?"

"It appears that Ms. Potts is in a bit of distress at the moment."

"Distress?"

"Yes sir. She is tossing and turning in her bed. And screaming out for you."

Tony immediately bolted from the garage and up to the guest room where Pepper was sleeping. She was in fact, tossing and turning in bed just like Jarvis had told him. She was crying out for Tony to save her.

"Pepper, Pepper," he gently said shaking her a bit as he sat down next to her on the bed. "Wake up baby, it's only a dream. Come on wake up. I'm here."

Her eyes flew opened as tears rolled down her tears. She immediately fell against Tony's chest and began sobbing. He wrapped his arms around her, picked her up and carried her into the living room. He sat down on the couch, with her still in his arms. Nothing was said between them for a few minutes, as he held her close and comforted her. He had a pretty good idea about what the nightmare was about and he had to figure out a way to make her forget all about it.

And maybe, just maybe, she could help him as well.

"Thank you," she finally whispered against his shoulder once she had calmed down.

"For what?"

"Rescuing me."

"I think you've got it wrong," he said softly kissing her forehead. "You saved me a long time ago Pepper. I just now have noticed it."

The rest of the night, Tony held her in his arms and made sure that nothing else bothered her the rest of the night.


	7. Chapter 7

AN: Sorry this took so long. I've had a mild case of writer's block. So enjoy!!

Chapter Seven:

"Jarvis when was the last time that Pepper took a vacation?" Tony asked the next morning when Pepper had gone to run her daily errands.

"Never sir," the AI quickly answered.

Tony smiled slyly as he began to plot in his mind.

Pepper sighed as she collapsed into her chair in her office back at Tony's mansion. She hated Mondays because there was always so much to do. She slipped off her high heels to her feet a break while she was checking and responding to emails as well as other tasks that ended up being her responsibility.

Pepper closed her eyes and took a deep breath, preparing herself for the onslaught of emails as she double clicked on the email icon on her laptop.

"No new messages," the computer said.

She quickly opened her eyes and starred in shock at the computer. What in the world was going on? Usually on Mondays, she had between 100 to 300 emails to sort through.

"Pepper can you come down here for a second please?" Tony's voice said over the intercom.

"Sure," she replied, still a bit confused at what was going on with her emails.

* * *

Tony couldn't help but smile as he waited for Pepper in his workshop. After finding out that she hadn't taken a vacation since she began working for him, he decided that he would force her to take one. Especially after what he had witnessed last night. In fact, he needed a vacation as well. So he figured why not take one together. That wasn't entirely true – Tony Stark could take a vacation, but Iron Man couldn't.

So, his plan was simple – take the yacht out for a few days, maybe sail to Avalon and down to San Diego. Stay close enough to home, yet far enough so that he could focus on Pepper, while still staying in touch with S.H.I.E.L.D. and the rest of the world.

He knew that Pepper would object, but he would hear nothing of it. He was going to pull rank as boss over boyfriend.

"What did you need?" she asked as she entered his workshop.

"Effective immediately you are to take a vacation for no less then a week," he said with a straight face as he turned to look at her.

"But…"

He quickly cut her off. "There is to be no arguments, Potts," he said standing up and moving towards her. "You haven't taken a vacation since you started working for me and I can't remember when the last time you took a day off was. So its either take a vacation with me or hell, I'll fire you."

Pepper glared at him. "You would fire me?" she asked in disbelief.

He nodded. He knew that he was getting to her.

"But why?"

"Because we both need a vacation," he said pulling her close to him by her hips. "So if you willingly take a vacation, I will take one as well."

"What's the catch?" she asked looking at him.

"No catch. I just want to get away from her for a few days, so I figured, 'hey I have an extremely attractive girlfriend who is overworked. She needs a vacation like I need a vacation. So why not take one together?'"

She smiled. "What did you have in mind?"

"Sailing to Avalon, then maybe to San Diego. Just you and I on the yacht. Well Jarvis too, but only to keep us in touch with the world incase Iron Man is needed. But other then that no other work."

"Promise?" she asked.

He nodded. "But that goes double for you," he said. "No blackberrys allowed."

"But then who is going to make sure that the company doesn't fall apart?"

"I'm sure that Rhodey will help out, especially since he wants me to make him a suit of his own. Plus, there is Martha, your intern. She can handle the emails and such. Besides I think that Jarvis and I did a pretty good job at handling the 236 emails that you had this morning."

She laughed. "So you were the ones who went through the emails."

Tony nodded. "But no more work talk," he said stealing a kiss from her. "Go back to your apartment, pack for at least a week to 10 days and hurry back here so we can leave before it gets dark."

"You know I take forever to pack," she said breaking free of his grasp. "But I will try to hurry."

He watched with a smile as she left his workshop. He honestly never thought that anyone could make him feel the way that Pepper had made him feel. She made him feel alive.

And nothing was going to ever going to take that away from him...

* * *

"I will send my two best men with you," one man said.

"That would be helpful. Then they can help me bring him to you."

The first man nodded. The two men shook hands in the dark and quickly parted ways. They both knew that their meetings had to be kept quiet and in several different locations.

Between the two of them, they had both everything to loose if they were caught together.

One would loose his part of the family fortune and a chance to avenge his father's death at the hands of Iron Man.

The other would loose the chance to avenge his brother's death at the hands of Iron Man, as well as his chance to bring fear and terror to the world at large.

Then again, neither had really anything to loose as well…

* * *

AN#2: Just to let ya'll know Avalon is on Catalina Island, which is off the coast of California……just an FYI.


	8. Chapter 8

_AN: Sorry for not updating sooner….my muse has left me for a while -- but she recently decided to come back! So enjoy!!_

Chapter 8:

Pepper slowly ran her hand along Tony's forehead, wiping the sweat away as she did so. She held him close to her in the darkness, softly humming to try and calm him down. Tony screaming out from his sleep had waked her abruptly in the middle of their first night back on solid land after a peaceful and relaxing vacation.

He had been screaming out for her along with cries of pain. She had quickly woken him up and he had immediately engulfed her in a huge hug. that was when she had felt him crying against her shoulder and physically shaking. That was when she knew he needed some tender, loving care – the kind that her mother had given her after her father had died when she was barely 10 years old.

She had moved against the headboard and sat up, while moving Tony, so that his head was resting against her chest. And so far, her humming and gentle touches proved to be working. He had calmed down.

"No ones ever done this for me," he said in a whisper, taking a deep breath as Pepper continued to rub her hands along his neck and face.

"That's why it's called a relationship, Tony. We help each other out and make the other a better person."

"I never thought about it that way."

Pepper smiled as she bent over and softly kissed his forehead before moving back next to him in bed. She snuggled close to him as he wrapped his arms around her.

"You know that you're amazing," he whispered in her ear.

She didn't say a word, but he knew – even in the dark – that she was smiling. "I love you Pepper Potts."

"I love you too."

* * *

Tony sat in his garage, tinkering with his Iron Man suit the next morning, when Pepper brought him his coffee along with a very large stack of papers to sign.

"I need you to sign all of these, then quickly get ready for your noon board meeting at the office." Pepper said in her back-to-work voice.

Tony nodded as he drank the cup of coffee. But he had something else on his mind other then the board meeting.

"It was a nightmare about the cave," he said after he was done drinking his coffee.

Pepper looked up from punching in an email response on her Blackberry with a confused look on her face. "what?"

"the nightmare last night. I was dreaming about Afghanistan."

Pepper's eyes grew huge as she practically fell into the chair that was behind her at Tony's desk. she didn't say a word as Tony continued talking.

"I was reliving it all again, Pepper. Waking up during my surgery, being dunked in water, waking up and finding myself attached to a car battery. The entire time all I could think about was escaping and making it home to you."

"To me?" she asked with tears glistening in her eyes.

Tony nodded as he stood up and moved towards his girlfriend. He knelt down in front of her and wiped her tears away. "everything over there made me see things differently. I know we have talked about it a hundred times over and I have even begun to show you. But let me show you even more so."

"what do you mean?"

Tony reached around her, opened up his desk drawer, and took out a small silver egg. He handed it to Pepper. "Go on open it," he said with a smile.

She took the egg from Tony and opened it. and as the egg opened, she gasped. Inside was a stunning diamond ring set in white gold, with tiny diamonds all along the setting. She didn't say anything as he took the ring from the egg, slipped onto her left ring finger then looked up at Pepper.

"Pepper Potts, will you marry me? I know now that there is no one else that I want to spend the rest of my life with but you."

still unable to speak, Pepper frantically nodded yes, as she pulled Tony up and kissed him deeply on the lips. After their kiss, Tony pulled back and looked at her. "I need you to think about doing one thing for me," he said, brushing the hair out of her eyes.

"What's that?" she asked still beaming.

"Think about moving in with me. I hate waking up after nightmares without you by my side."

She smiled and kissed his lips. "For you I will."

* * *

AN#2: I got the idea for the egg and the engagement ring design from my little sister's engagement ring -- she just got engaged last week! That's what gave me the inspiration for this chapter!


	9. Chapter 9

_AN: Thanks to all my lovely reviewers from the last chapter who congratulated my sister! BTW she has become a bridezilla! It's gonna be a nightmare (and I'm the Maid of Honor)….anyways! Enjoy!! Writing is going to be my only sanity until April 25th..._

Chapter Nine:

"Do we really have to do this?" Pepper asked almost whining.

Tony nodded as he buttoned the top button on his shirt. He slung a tie around his neck and began to tie it, but his hands were shaking too bad to do so. Pepper sighed as she stood up from where she was sitting on the bed and promptly tied his tie for him.

"Thank you," he said kissing her lips softly.

"You're welcome," she said turning away from him.

He sighed as he walked up behind her. He knew that she was upset about this, mainly since Pepper hated the spotlight. She had gone to functions like this before – but as his assistant, representing Stark International. Hell, he was nervous about it all as well. This was the public event that he and Pepper would be out in the spotlight as a couple, let alone an engaged couple.

"I promise that everything will be ok," he said, gently placing his hands on her hips and turning her around to face him. "We had PR write something up and send it out to the media today reporting that you and I were now engaged. Yes, there will be photographers and reporters, but I won't leave your side and you don't have to talk to them."

"Promise not to leave my side?"

"As long as you are wearing that dress," Tony said pulling back and taking a look at her in a similar dress to the one she wore at the Firemen's Benefit several months prior, except this one was a shimmering pink color. God, she was breathtaking. "I will not let you out of my sight. That I can guarantee you."

"If not, you owe me," she said, making sure that his tie was straight once again before checking her make up one last time. Tony smiled to himself, curious at what she meant by that.

* * *

"_Tony! Pepper! Over here!"_

"_When is the wedding?"_

"_How long have you two actually been together?"_

"_Just one quick photo!"_

"_Are you two actually an item or just a stunt?"_

That last question made Pepper cringe as she and Tony entered the Policeman's Ball benefiting the Children's Hospital of LA. Tony felt her hand begin to tremble and tense up the closer they got to the door. Perhaps just one photo would shut everyone up.

In one swift move, Pepper found Tony holding her close to him and looking deep into her eyes. He winked at her. That was when she got the idea – a kiss for the cameras. As soon as their lips touched, the cameras went crazy. Hopefully it was enough to keep the cameras and reporters at bay for the night.

"Come on," he whispered pulling her extra close after their kiss. "Better get inside."

Pepper nodded. She didn't know how he could live in the limelight – this was going to take some getting used to.

* * *

He watched as they slowly danced during the benefit. Being the heir to a fortune did have its advantages. But playing the revenge game, he was going to have to be extra careful and extra sneaky.

Yet his father hadn't been.

He watched Tony Stark's precious fiancée through the bottom of his whisky glass. The way he was holding her in a protective embrace, even when they weren't dancing, meant only one thing.

Pepper Potts was Tony Stark's undoing thus Iron Man's undoing.

His counterpart would love to know this.

Now that he knew how to get to Tony Stark, it was all going to get harder. How would he be able to get to Pepper Potts without Stark around? This was going to take a while longer. But now matter how long it did take, he would have his revenge.

Ezekiel Stane did not fail.


	10. Chapter 10

AN: As usual thanks to all those who review!! I have a simple outline for the rest of this story and I like how it is moving along….so enjoy and feedback is always welcomed!!

Chapter 10:

Rhodey was shocked as he sat in Tony's workshop, just days after the coming out of Tony and Pepper as a couple, let alone an engaged couple. Not only were his two best friends engaged but Tony had secretly also been building him an Iron Man suit of his own as well.

"It's…it's…" Rhodey said looking over the dark gray and blue suit over and over again. He had wanted to join Tony up there in the sky, in a suit, fighting the good fight. And now, he would be able to.

"Beautiful." Tony said finishing the statement from behind an Awww-struck Rhodey.

"Yeah. But why are you making me a suit?"

"Every good pilot needs a wing man," he said slapping his best friend on the back. "Besides there is no one else that I want next to me up there and at my side when Pepper walks down the aisle."

"Of course, I'll be there," he said before turning his attention back to the second Iron Man suit. "What name should I go by?"

"I was thinking War Machine," Tony said.

"War Machine?"

Tony nodded as he pushed a button and a heavy artillery machine gun appeared on its right shoulder. "It comes with some sweet guns among other things I added just for you," he said smirking a bit. "Its an upgrade from my old suit, but still nothing like what I've done to my suit."

"I don't care about yours! I care about mine. When can we test it out?"

"Suit up."

* * *

Pepper slowly ran her hands along her neck as she finished her work for the day. She could feel the knots from tension and worry in her neck. Sure, she had been stressed out the last few days because of the engagement, but that was to be expected. Tony hadn't gone on any missions as Iron Man lately, and with the addition of Rhodey, much to her pleasure, she could breathe a little easier.

"Pep, what are you stressed about?" Tony said as he removed her hands from her neck and began massaging her neck himself. He and Rhodey had just gotten back from taking a quick spin across Mexico to test out the War Machine suit.

"Honestly I'm not sure," she said in a sigh as Tony kept massaging her neck.

After a few more minutes, almost all the knots were gone from her neck. Tony spun her chair around so that he could look at her.

"Pepper out with it," he said looking in her eyes. He knew that she was avoiding something. She sighed deeply.

"I don't want a big, flashy wedding. I hate being in the spotlight and I know that marrying you, I will be."

"So what do you want? Not to marry me?"

"No! Of course, I want to marry you! But can we like elope or something?" she asked a bit hopeful.

Tony smiled and softly kissed her lips. "No eloping, but I do have an idea."

"And what's that?" she asked.

"How about you go home, get a week's worth of clothes so that you can stay here before Rhodey, Happy and I move all your stuff this weekend, then I will tell you when you get back here."

"I can do that," she said standing up, kissing Tony's goodbye and heading towards her apartment.

* * *

The one thing that Pepper did love about her apartment was that once you were in the underground parking garage, all camera crews and media were kept out. So all the media outlets that were hoping for a photo of Pepper at her apartment were out of luck. Then again, the same held true for the Stark Mansion as well. Yet, there, the media had to worry about crossing a ticked off Iron Man. Just the thought of Tony blowing up TV cameras brought a chuckle to Pepper as she locked her car door.

That was when her world when dark.

* * *

"How long as Pepper been gone?" Tony asked Jarvis.

"About three hours sir. Shall I try calling her again?"

He was about to say yes, when his doorbell rang. "Jarvis who is here?"

"The Malibu police."

Tony practically ran to the front door and flung it opened.

"Mr. Stark?" the detective said. Two uniformed officers flanked him.

"Yes?"

"We need you to accompany us to the hospital."

He looked at the trio confused a bit. "Why?"

"Something has happened to Ms. Virginia Potts."


	11. Chapter 11

_AN: Sorry it took me a few days to get this written – I wasn't sure what I wanted to do with the opening part. So I had to consult my muse aka my best friend. So enjoy!!_

Chapter 11:

Tony sat running his hands nervously through his hair as he sat in the waiting room of the Malibu hospital.

This wasn't what he wanted to ever have happen to Pepper – she had been attacked in the parking garage to her apartment. He knew that he should have gone with her.

Thank goodness that this time, she hadn't been raped again – she had come close but a husband and wife who lived in the same complex had come upon the scene and ended up saving Pepper's life. That reminded Tony that he would have to send them a thank you gift - an extremely generous thank you gift.

As a result of the attack, Pepper ended up being rendered unconscious along with sustaining a broken ankle from when she fell.

When he had arrived at the hospital, the paparazzi were already there. He considered them vultures – nothing more, nothing less. Didn't they have anything better to do then prey upon helpless victims of random violence?

Random violence.

Thank God that had been all it was. The man that the police had arrested in connection to the crime, was nothing more then a petty street thug, who had simply choose Pepper as a random victim. The thug admitted to it all once he found out that the woman he had mugged was engaged to Iron Man.

That was the one thing that Tony couldn't wait to tell Pepper about – the way that the confession had come about. He knew that she would get a kick out of that.

"Mr. Stark?"

Tony looked up at the sound of his name. A nurse stood in front of him, smiling. "She's awake. You can see her now."

He nodded as he stood up and quickly, trying his damnest not to break into a run, made his way down the hall to Pepper's room.

* * *

The sound of approaching feet to her door, made Pepper turn her head and look at who was walking into her room. When she had woken up in the hospital, she immediately started asking for Tony and wanting to know what happened. All that she had been told was that her fiancé wanted to tell her what had happened. She was scared that she had been raped again. All she could remember was being hit on the back of the head.

The fear on her face melted as soon as she saw Tony enter the room. Tears slowly began to roll down her cheeks. Within seconds, Tony was at her side, wiping her tears away and softly kissing her lips.

"Thank God you are alright," he whispered against her lips as he kissed her a second time.

"What happened Tony?" she asked after the kiss.

"You were mugged. That's all. Some of your neighbors walked up on the attack and saved you," he said brushing the hair out of her face. "You were knocked unconscious and broke your ankle. Nothing that a few weeks of taking it easy can't remedy."

Pepper sighed in relief. At least she wouldn't have to relive that nightmare over again. "What about the press?"

"Rhodey is going to make a statement covering up what happened. You know he is quite good at that. And I even called Agent Coulson to make sure that everyone cooperated."

"So it's a media circus?"

Tony nodded. He knew just how much Pepper hated the media attention. That made him even more determined to see his current idea through about his and Pepper's wedding. And now he wasn't even going to tell her. He would just surprise her. Plus once they were married, it would be easier to protect her from the paparazzi and media.

"Don't worry Potts," he said with a wink. "For once I am going to take care of you."

* * *

After being discharged the following morning, Tony shielded Pepper as he and Happy helped her into the limo and drove off from the hospital. Earlier that morning he had already put his wedding idea into motion by enlisting Rhodey and Happy to help him.

"How can I help you sir?"

Rhodey blushed as he looked around the bridal boutique. For once in his life he was intimidate. He was in a place that no man should ever go. But he was doing this for Tony and Pepper. "Um yeah," he said beginning to ramble. "My friend wants to surprise his fiancée by taking her on a surprise cruise and marrying her there. She has a thing against big weddings. So, he wants me to pick her out a simple wedding dress. Nothing to flashy or showy. And money is not a problem."

Sure, it was a lie, but that wasn't the point. The point was he needed to get Pepper a wedding dress.

"OK let's see what we can do," the young woman said. "Do you know what size dress she wears?"

Rhodey nodded as he and the sales associate began looking through wedding dresses for Pepper.

* * *

"I swear I am never doing that again!" Rhodey said walking into Tony's workshop later that afternoon. "I don't see how women can do that!"

Tony laughed as he was putting the final touches on the War Machine armor. "So I take it you were successful?"

"Yeah, I think you're gonna love it. So is Happy doing the other stuff?"

"Yup."

"And how did you manage to convince a florist, photographer and a preacher to all help you at the last minute?"

"Money makes the world go round." Tony said with a smile.

"So where is the blushing bride to be?"

"She is sleeping," he answered, moving now to his Iron Man armor. "She is sleepy from the pain meds that she has managed to sleep most of the day. So that is why everything is happening tonight."

"You know that she just might kill you for this."

"That's where I think you are wrong," Tony said with a smile. He knew that this was exactly what Pepper wanted.

* * *

Around 6 o'clock that night, Pepper awoke from her nap in the guest room. She wondered just how long she had slept and also if any of the day's work had been done.

"Jarvis, where is Tony?" she asked, looking up at the ceiling.

"He is currently in the workshop. But he asked that you take a shower, put on the dress that is hanging in your closet and inform me when you are completely ready. Then I will get someone to help you to where he is."

Slowly Pepper, stood up and limped over to the closet in the guest room. Jarvis' request had seemed odd, but when she saw the simple, white wedding dress hanging in her closet, she gasped. It was then that she wondered just what was going on.

It took her almost an hour and a half to manage to get in a shower, put on her makeup, do her hair and get into the dress. As she looked in the mirror, she had to admit that whoever picked out this dress did a great job!

It was a simple sleeveless white dress made of silk with delicate beadwork along the trim. It wasn't too flashy or fancy. Just how she liked it.

"Ok Jarvis, I'm ready," she said sitting down on the bed, making sure not the wrinkle her dress.

Within a few minutes, there was a knock on the door. She slowly moved towards the door and opened it. There stood Rhodey, in a tuxedo.

"Damn, I did do a good job," he said with a smile. Pepper blushed.

"What's going on?" she asked.

"Typical Tony," he replied with a wink. "But come on we mustn't keep them waiting."

And in a swift move, he had picked up Pepper into his arms and began carrying her towards the back veranda. Before heading onto the back veranda, he stopped in the kitchen and picked up a bouquet of red roses and tulips from the counter. "You're going to need those," he said handing them to her.

That was when she had a pretty good idea of what was going on.

It was the sweetest and romantic thing that anyone had ever done for her.

"So are you going to walk me down the aisle?" she asked.

"Nope. I'm carrying you."

* * *

As soon as Pepper saw the veranda, she couldn't believe it. It was all light up by candle light from hundreds of candles set around it as well as floating in the pool, all set against the setting sun. There were also bushes of roses and red tulips everywhere. It was breath taking. Standing at the center of it all was Tony and a preacher. Happy stood off to the side with a photographer.

It seemed to take forever as Rhodey carried her towards Tony. She was still in awe that he had done all of this in a day. But then again this was Tony. He could do anything if he put his mind and wallet to it.

Rhodey helped her stand as she took a hold of Tony's hand. She smiled at him. He could already see the tears forming in the corners of her eyes. He squeezed her hand as they turned towards the preacher and he began the ceremony.

"Do you Anthony Edward Stark take thee Virginia Potts to be your lawfully wedded wife; for better, for worse; in sickness and in health, as long as you both shall live?" the preacher asked.

Tony turned to look at her. She softly smiled at him. "I do."

The preacher went on. "Do you Virginia Potts take thee Anthony Edward Stark to be you lawfully wedded husband; for better, for worse; in sickness and in health, as long as you both shall live?"

"I do."

The priest blessed the wedding bands that Rhodey took out of his pocket before letting the couple exchange them. Tony went first. "With this ring as a token of my undying love and affection, I thee wed."

Pepper smiled as Tony slipped the small white gold band around her finger. Embedded on the sides were small diamonds. It matched her engagement ring perfectly.

Pepper picked Tony's ring off the Bible. "With this ring as a token of my undying love and affection, I thee wed."

She slipped his simple white gold ring on. Tony squeezed her hands as they waited for the priest to finish.

"I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride."

Tony pulled Pepper close to him and kissed her deeply on the lips. Rhodey and Happy both cheered and congratulated them both after the kiss. By then, Pepper was crying again.

"See I told you she wouldn't like it!" Rhodey said to Tony.

"No! I loved it!" she said defending Tony. "It was perfect. Simply perfect!"

The group of friends enjoyed a laughed and headed inside the house, to enjoy a peaceful evening and to celebrate the wedding of Tony and Pepper.


End file.
